What this covers
Semaglutide and tirzepatide are the two molecules behind almost every GLP-1 weight-loss plan sold online. Semaglutide acts on one receptor pathway. Tirzepatide acts on two. In trials of the FDA-approved branded versions, tirzepatide produced more average weight loss.
In the telehealth market, tirzepatide costs about $26 to $150 more per month than semaglutide from the same seller. That gap is real but it is smaller than the gap between the cheapest and the most expensive seller of either one — which runs from about $948 to about $4,188 a year.
Discuss the treatment choice with a prescriber before comparing sellers. The products and services in a price table are not evidence of equivalent safety, quality or results. Trimi’s updated review distinguishes an annual payment from a separate no-commitment option; that difference matters when comparing costs.
Check Trimi’s current plans ↗ Check Trimi’s current plans ↗ Compare all sixteen providers
Vendor buttons are affiliate links; we may earn a commission. Internal review and comparison links stay on this site. Confirm the selected plan’s current payment schedule and refund terms before paying.
What each molecule actually is
Semaglutide is a GLP-1 receptor agonist. It imitates a gut hormone your body already makes after eating, which slows stomach emptying, increases the sense of fullness and reduces appetite signalling. It is the active ingredient in Ozempic and Rybelsus, approved for type 2 diabetes, and in Wegovy, approved for weight management.
Tirzepatide is a dual agonist. It acts on the GLP-1 receptor and on the GIP receptor, a second incretin pathway. It is the active ingredient in Mounjaro, approved for type 2 diabetes, and Zepbound, approved for weight management. Several telehealth companies market it as "GLP-1 + GIP" rather than by name.
Both are given as a once-weekly injection in their approved injectable forms, and both are normally started at a low dose and stepped up over several months under a prescriber's direction.
What the trial evidence shows
In the pivotal trials of the branded products, semaglutide 2.4mg produced average weight reduction in the region of 15 per cent over roughly 68 weeks, alongside diet and activity changes. Tirzepatide at its higher doses produced average reductions in the region of 20 per cent over roughly 72 weeks. A head-to-head trial reported at the end of 2024 also favoured tirzepatide on average weight change.
Three caveats matter more than the headline percentages. Averages are not predictions — individual results in these trials ranged from very large losses to almost none. Every participant also received structured lifestyle support, which most telehealth plans do not include. And all of this evidence was generated with FDA-approved branded medication. Practical version: read those percentages as evidence about the branded products, and choose a compounded seller on the things you can verify before you pay — the published price, the billing interval and the refund window. Those are the terms you will actually be held to.
If a telehealth site quotes trial results on a page selling a compounded preparation, it is borrowing evidence about a different product. Compounded medication has not been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness or manufacturing quality. At least one provider we track does exactly this. We flag it in our Care Bare Rx review.
Side effects: broadly the same family
Both molecules produce the same class of side effects, and they are mostly gastrointestinal: nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, constipation, reflux and abdominal discomfort. These are usually worst in the days after a dose increase and tend to ease as the body adapts. Some people never tolerate them.
Both carry the same serious warnings in their approved labelling, including a boxed warning about thyroid C-cell tumours seen in rodents, and cautions around pancreatitis, gallbladder disease, kidney injury from dehydration, and interactions with other diabetes medication. Neither is appropriate in pregnancy.
Which one you tolerate better is individual and not predictable from the trial data. That is a conversation with a prescriber, not a purchasing decision. Our guide to what to expect from GLP-1 side effects goes into more detail.
What the telehealth market charges for each
Here is the same-provider comparison, annualised using each company's own billing interval. Where a provider sells both, the difference in the right-hand column is what tirzepatide costs you extra with that seller.
| Provider | Compounded semaglutide, per year | Compounded tirzepatide, per year | The tirzepatide premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trimi Health — annual prepaid plans, checked 17 September 2026 | $1,188 upfront | $1,500 upfront | +$312 for the annual plans |
| Embody | ~$948 (promotional) | ~$1,548 (promotional) | +$600 |
| CoreAge Rx | ~$1,188 | ~$1,788 | +$600 |
| WellMedr — earlier figures withdrawn | Use a current written quote; see the updated review. | ||
| Bodybuilding Health+ | $1,668 – $2,148 | $1,908 – $2,508 | +$240 to +$360 |
| TrimRx | ~$2,148 | ~$3,108 | +$960 |
| SkinnyRx | ~$2,388 | ~$3,588 | +$1,200 |
| Synergy Rx | ~$2,388 if monthly | ~$4,188 if monthly | +$1,800 |
| Direct Meds | ~$3,030 sublingual | ~$3,614 injectable | +$584 |
| Oak | ~$1,428 to ~$2,280 | No separate price published | Not calculable |
| Care Bare Rx | No price published | No price published | Not calculable |
The table contains offers with different billing structures and source dates. It cannot establish today’s cheapest provider or which treatment is appropriate. Compare the full commitment, what is included and the price after any promotion.
If your prescriber recommends tirzepatide, compare the selected plan’s full payment schedule. Read the Trimi review and the Embody review for dated pricing and policy details before relying on a promotional figure.
Check Trimi’s current plans ↗ Check Embody’s current offer ↗
Vendor buttons are affiliate links; we may earn a commission. Internal review and comparison links stay on this site. Confirm the selected plan’s current payment schedule and refund terms before paying.
Check Trimi’s current plans ↗ See the full tirzepatide comparison
Vendor buttons are affiliate links; we may earn a commission. Internal review and comparison links stay on this site. Confirm the selected plan’s current payment schedule and refund terms before paying.
The question that decides it for most people
It is not "which molecule is stronger". It is "which version of this can I actually get, and what will it really cost me over a year".
If you have insurance that might cover a branded GLP-1, start there. Zepbound and Wegovy are the approved weight-management products, and a covered prescription can cost less than any cash plan in the table above. Ro is the only provider in our comparison built around checking coverage first; our Ro review explains what its membership does and does not include.
If you are paying cash for a compounded preparation, the decision is mostly about price, billing interval and refund terms, because the molecule is available from almost every seller on the list. Read the annualised price ranking and the refund comparison before you decide.
Who each one tends to suit
Reasons people end up on semaglutide
- It is cheaper from every seller that offers both.
- There is an approved oral form, which matters if injections are genuinely not workable for you.
- A prescriber may prefer it based on your history, other medication, or tolerance.
- If you tolerate it and it works, there is no clinical reason to pay more for something else.
Reasons people end up on tirzepatide
- Larger average weight reduction in trials of the branded products.
- Some people tolerate the dual-agonist better; some tolerate it worse. It is not predictable in advance.
- A prescriber may recommend it after an inadequate response to semaglutide.
- It is available from twelve of the sixteen providers we track, so switching seller is usually possible.
So which one, and from whom
Which molecule is a clinical conversation. Which seller is not, and it is the bigger number. Both compounded routes below have not been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness or manufacturing quality.
- Your prescriber recommends semaglutide. Compare the complete cost, commitment and cancellation terms of the selected offer. Check the dated semaglutide comparison and confirm the quote before paying.
- Your prescriber recommends tirzepatide. Use the dated tirzepatide comparison to identify billing questions. Compare annual prepaid and recurring plans separately.
- You think insurance might cover a branded product. Check that before you pay cash for anything. Ro is the insurance-first option in our comparison and pays us nothing; the link is a plain internal one to our Ro review.
Check Trimi’s current plans ↗ Check Trimi’s current plans ↗ Check Embody’s current offer ↗ Compare all sixteen providers
Vendor buttons are affiliate links; we may earn a commission. Internal review and comparison links stay on this site. Confirm the selected plan’s current payment schedule and refund terms before paying.
Common questions
Is compounded tirzepatide the same as Zepbound?
No. Zepbound is an FDA-approved finished product. A compounded preparation is made up by a pharmacy for one named patient and has not been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness or manufacturing quality. It is not a generic. Our explainer on compounded vs FDA-approved GLP-1s covers the difference in full.
Does my price go up as my dose increases?
Prices may depend on the selected plan, formulation, dose or promotion. Ask the provider for the cost at each stage of your prescribed treatment and whether the price is fixed for the purchased term. A missing statement is not a promise that the price will stay the same.
Can I switch from one to the other?
That is a clinical decision for your prescriber. Before changing providers, ask your care team how to maintain continuity and ask the billing team which payments or commitments remain. A refund policy should not determine whether you continue a treatment your clinician advises changing.
How we sourced this
We read every figure above from the provider's own public pages — product and pricing pages, FAQs, terms of use and refund or cancellation policies — on 11 August 2026, and we annualised them ourselves using the billing interval each provider publishes. We have not been through any provider's checkout, so we are reporting what the documents say rather than what a bank statement shows. Where a provider does not publish a billing interval we say so instead of guessing, and the annual figure in that row assumes monthly billing purely so the row is comparable. Providers change pricing often. If you find a discrepancy, tell us on our contact page and we will check it and update the row.
Related reading
- Compounded semaglutide prices compared
- Compounded tirzepatide prices compared
- How much weight can you expect to lose on a GLP-1?
- Compounded vs FDA-approved GLP-1s
- The full sixteen-provider comparison
Medical note
This is consumer purchasing information, not medical advice. GLP-1 medicines are prescription drugs with real risks and real contraindications, and nothing on this page has been clinically reviewed. Talk to a clinician who knows your history before starting, changing or stopping treatment. See our medical disclaimer.